Mental Health and Emergencies: CBM Partners Meeting the Needs of their Communities

17.05.2015

Mental Health and Emergencies: CBM Partners Meeting the Needs of their Communities

As we watch the events unfold in Nepal since April 25, we are reminded of the extra challenges that people with disabilities experience during disasters. Those with physical disabilities may struggle to flee to safety or travel long distances for essentials like food and water. The methods used to communicate an approaching disaster may not consider the needs of people who live with blindness, deafness or learning disabilities. Temporary shelter facilities, as well as other relief and longer-term recovery services, may not be accessible. And suddenly there is an influx of people experiencing new disabilities within the population; physical trauma caused by an earthquake, for example, may lead to the amputation of limbs or spinal cord injuries.

At the same time, people with disabilities show incredible amounts of resilience in emergencies. There are countless stories of people with disabilities helping their own community members. I think back to working in Haiti with CBM after the 2010 earthquake. Key members of our community rehabilitation team had disabilities themselves, yet refused to let disability equal inability. They worked hard within our teams to ensure that the needs of their whole society were being met.

This week we celebrate Mental Health Awareness Week– a perfect time to talk about the importance of mental health in disasters. People with psychosocial disabilities (those living with disabilities caused by mental illness) are often left behind during a disaster. In the Philippines after Typhoon Haiyan, we heard stories of people living with mental illness who had been chained in their homes and were unable to flee to safety when the typhoon was approaching. In addition, access to mental health care – and psychotropic medicines in low and middle income countries is an ongoing issue. During a disaster, the ability to access care and medication often shifts from challenging to virtually impossible.

CBM recognizes the importance of mental health and psychosocial support during emergencies. We also place a high value on the knowledge and understanding that our local partners have during emergencies within their countries. This is why CBM works hand in hand with our partners during and after emergencies.

In Sierra Leone, for example, our Enabling Access to Mental Health programme had already established an active mental health advocacy group, the Mental Health Coalition – Sierra Leone. The Coalition had become a focal point for mental health system development, in collaboration with the Government of Sierra Leone. When the Ebola outbreak started in West Africa, the Coalition was in the perfect position to support the coordination of mental health and psychosocial actors in Sierra Leone. They were able to advocate for better psychosocial support for health care workers. They also pushed to have mental health professionals (trained under the Enabling Access to Mental Health Programme) placed strategically throughout the country to offer support for those experiencing signs of distress and ongoing care for people with psychosocial disabilities. The Coalition supported the adaptation of training and activities to the local context, and advised on the development of strategies, policies and basic packages. Because we had a trusted partner already engaged on the ground, CBM was able to mobilize financial support so that they could continue their impressive work.

Now, looking to Nepal, CBM is currently implementing response work, again with strong partners, to offer mental health and psychosocial support. Already, CBM is a partner with a national level mental health group- KOSHISH. Our emergency response unit based in Kathmandu has been liaising with them since the earthquake struck, as part of our overall response, and we are now at the stage of providing them with support to be able to meet immediate psychosocial needs of people affected by the earthquake, and to improve access to basic relief aid as well as to specialise services for persons with psychosocial disabilities. In addition, we will draw on the knowledge and experience of our partners doing Community Based Rehabilitation work throughout Nepal. They are in the perfect position to provide their communities with psychosocial support, and we are already working to ensure that relevant staff members are also trained in Psychological First Aid.

People with Epilepsy often face similar stigma and discrimination in their communities as those with psychosocial disabilities. For this reason, we encourage our partners to also include people with Epilepsy into our mental health and psychosocial support programmes.

Addressing mental health and psychosocial needs is essential for complete and effective disaster response. I hope that by highlighting the work of CBM in emergencies, the experience, rights and needs of people with psychosocial disabilities, are clear. But more importantly, I hope to have shown a way to approach these challenges – not only will this strategy improve the situation for many individuals affected by the current emergency, but will build their resilience for the future, and therefore that of their families, communities and society as a whole.

CBM is working to bring urgent relief to people with disabilities in Nepal after the earthquake on 25th April, and provide vitally needed healthcare for both physical and mental health needs.